L.A. Dish of the Month, August 2014: COCKTAILS and Bar Food

The goal is to collectively try as many different varieties, kinds and types of Cocktails and Bar Food as possible. Anything related is fair game. And, it goes without saying, that telling us of fabulous places to find either or both (and all of their various iterations) that you've tried in the past is great, and recounting vivid memories is also fun, but what we want are real-live, current progress reports of what and where you are finding and eating, and drinking, Cocktails and Bar Food.

So let's start exploring and eating—report back with reviews and photos.

Maybe it is just me, but I am also very interested in value. So give prices and portions.

FYI Deals (I know this isn't a "Happy Hour" thread, so I will add some non-special posts soon):

The Misfit has happy hour EVERYDAY from noon til 7pm. Their $11 cocktails are all half off (so $5.50). Not just at the bar, but anywhere you're seated. Fantastic deal. Especially paired with the Bar Fly lunch.

The Corner Door has happy hour everyday from 5pm - 7pm. Featured cocktails are $7 (including the Moscow Mule that comes in the fun little copper pot). And you can get a steak, fries, and small green salad for $15.

I think Kevin is "naturally carbonated". And Zeus bless him for it - gotta love the fizz he brings to this place!

I'm debating doing a Grand Tour of the westside's finest dive bars for this round. I don't drink the hard stuff, but I can still belly up to the bar and review the nibblies. I'm in a low-brow state of mind...

...Too bad The Joker is no longer in business. It is one of my life regrets that I was too skeered to go in there (and I don't scare easily!).

I'll do one. Their hotdogs that they distribute free of charge to patrons and even people who wander by on the sidewalk during their quarterly punk rock BBQ, are incredibly delicious! I think they 're all beef and they have all the fixings including fresh chopped onions. Worth it to show up on a Sunday afternoon listen to free music, hang out on the sidewalk, and eat some free dogs! The drinks are killer.

The Darkest Bar I've been. You literally have to stand in the doorway to let your eyes adjust to even make your way. They make mean martini's. I tried the Banana Martini that is not on the menu....STRONG and sweet. The absinthe made my lips numb :) They normally have a taco truck parked outside during late hours. The management was very cool about letting customers bring in food to the bar.

Oh that looks nicey nice..... A kosher one, huh? Interesting. You're still my hero of gluttony..... You're saving that stool at 'tana's and your homie is keeping it warm for me right?? I'll get there with ya soon....

Chased it down with a Kombucha Dog wild berry ginger kombucha. It's ~0.5-1% ABV, so you actually have to be 21+ to buy it. No, it is not my submission for the cocktail portion of this DotM, though I'd like to see if a shandy would qualify.

Edit: Re-ordered some of the text above, and added some text, to clarify that the burger is my submission to the DotM, not the kombucha.

It was very good! Nice avocado, spicy mayo's got a good kick. Great bun, almost as good as Belcampo's. A little on the small side. I could eat two of them as a meal. And as part of the Bar Fly Lunch menu on Fridays, it's only $5 so I really could eat two of them without breaking the bank (they're normally $15--dunno if the Bar Fly Lunch portion is smaller, having never ordered it outside of this promotion, but their $5 Jidori crispy chicken sandwich on Mondays are full size as far as I can tell).